Carpenter Ant Control - Bait, spray, granule treatment

Carpenter Ant
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See lancaster.unl.edu/enviro/ants/CAnts.htm

Carpenter Ants can be difficult to control because they have satellite nests in addition to the primary nest. Tthe primary nest will contain winged reproductive ants. The satellite nests contains only workers that are different in size.

Colony sizes range from 3,000-100,000 including satellite nests. It may take 3-6 years to reach this population. Typically there is only 1 queen per colony. Winged reproductives called swarmers are not produced until the colony has been around for 3-6 years depending on the species. These ants nest in wood and usually start with wood that has some fungus growth or moisture problem because this type of wood is easier to work with. The workers excavate these areas for nesting areas then as the population increases they venture in to the more solid part of the wood. They do not use the wood as nourishment. They make galleries for their nest sites in the wood. They remove the inside wood and expel the material to the outside. The debris is made up of fine wood particles, debris, and insect parts. It looks just like sawdust from woodcuts. This combination of materials is called frass. If you see a pile of this material examine the structure above this area to find possible nest areas.

They like to feed on aphids and other honey-producing insects due to their high sugar content. They also feed on the juices of the insects they capture. Sometimes on shrubs you can observe the ants in the shrub and aphids will be toward the top under the leaves trying to escape the impending result of being a meal. This leads to a couple of quick observations. First inspect landscape plants for small insect activity and treat as necessary to minimize excessive activity. Secondly, make sure branches are trimmed away from the structure. The branches can be used to bridge over to the structure making it easier for them to gain access to the inside.

These ants have a large trailing path sometimes as much as 300 ft or longer. Other entryways into the structure include utility lines or pipes. I’ve even seen them trail up gutter down spouts, through sky light framing, and even gaps in fascia boards on the eaves. Carpenter ants have an unusual habit of being more active late at night. It’s not uncommon for this time frame to be between 9pm – 2am. Sometimes you can even hear them inside the wall. With this in mind stethoscopes or other sound or movement detection devices are sometimes used to identify nest or trail areas.

There are several residual products in the form of aerosols, liquids, and granules that are labeled to control ants. These are not the best to use unless you have to gain immediate control in a particular area or know for certain all the ants are in this area. This treatment kills the ants you see but has no effect on controlling the problem from where it starts, the colony behind the wall, under the slab or some other object away from the structure. The colony could be in an old stump or other wood object. With ants, the workers take the bait to the larvae where they process the particle bait to a liquid then transfer it to the other colony members. Baits in general are the best method for ant control.

Control is a multi step process. Try to remove as much excess leaf and wood debris to minimize harborage sites. Trim back any landscape plant branches or limbs so they do not use this as a bridge to the structure. Inspect landscape plants so as to not let an excessive aphid or like type insect infestation to occur allowing an abundant food source to attract possible ant activity. Repair any gaps, cracks, or holes on the exterior of the structure to minimize entryways and harborage sites. Clean out gutter debris on a regular basis so this does not become an unwanted harborage area. It might be a nice idea to talk to your neighbor to see if any conducive areas are present at their area due to the large length of trailing area they can have.

Since these ants can have primary and satellite nests either inside and/or outside a thorough inspection to locate trails away from the structure is well worth the time. Do this at night if possible to look for trails while the ants are at their most active. Sometimes trails can be so established it has worn away the grass.

There are different methods of control. These include bait application, residual spray, and granule application. The residual may be in the form of an aerosol, liquid, or granule. The baits may be in the form of a gel, liquid, or particle. I prefer the bait method because the ants you see take it to the ants you don’t see. The Niban products in particular work because the particles are water resistant through up to 4 inches of water. They contain both protein and carbohydrate food attractants on the particles. Sometimes ants have a protein or meat preference and sometimes they have a carbohydrate or sweet preference. Since these ants can be hard to control I like to make a particle bait mixture containing about 80% Niban Insect Bait either regular size or fine granule, 15% Maxforce Granular Insect Bait either regular size or fine granule, and 5% Advance Granular Ant Bait. Since the Niban contains both protein and carbohydrate attractants on the particles this provides a double dose.The Maxforce is a protein base bait and the Advance is a carbohydrate base bait. This mixture is applied at the activity areas in small piles. Since the Niban is the only bait of the three that is weather resistant use this product for general foundation perimeter application or other exterior areas because the bait will hold up to moisture if it gets to it. The Niban could also be applied in the structure where activity is present in areas such as behind large items, carpet edges, sink pipe void areas, inside light and electrical switch plate covers, inside bath tub over flow cover areas if accessible, under base boards, garages. These products include Niban FG Insect Bait 1 lb. btl. The snuffer applicators work great for the interior void areas because it has an extended tip to reach inside these areas.

Other particle bait products include Maxforce Fine Granular Insect Bait 10 oz. btl, Maxforce Fine Granular Insect Bait 6 lb. btl, Maxforce Granular Insect Bait 10 oz. btl, Maxforce Granular Insect Bait 6 lb. btl, Maxforce Granular Insect Bait 25 lb. btl, Advance Granular Ant Bait 12 oz. btl, and Advance Granular Ant Bait 6 lb. btl, Advance Carpenter Ant Bait 8 oz. btl, and Advance Carpenter Ant Bait 2 lb. btl. The best way to apply particle baits is with a 14 oz. Centrobulb Duster.

For ant activity on the inside there are good gel products such as Maxforce Carpenter Ant Gel Bait 27 gram Tube, Uncle Albert’s Super Smart Ant Bait 43 gram Tube, and Terro Ant Killer Gel Bait 16 oz. btl. Ant Cafe Bait Stations 8/pk or Ant Cafe Bait Stations 48/bag are small empty stations you can fill with liquid, gel, or particle baits. This provides a good container to place where needed. Some people like to use their own “recipe” of ingredients for ants and other small insects. The gel products work great on the vertical areas where particle baits could not be applied. A helpful hint may be to apply a low adhesive masking tape or blue painter tape on the walls and then apply the gel bait to this. It makes clean up after the control very easy.

Termidor and Phantom are liquid ant bait concentrates. Phantom Termiticide-Insecticide 21 oz. btl is for interior use only at specified areas. Termidor SC Termiticide-Insecticide 20 oz. btl is for exterior use only at specified areas and intervals. The Termidor is available to Pest Control Operators with proof of a Termite License.

Aerosol control products include both residual and contact materials. Residual products leave behind material to remain active for a further length of time. Residual products include items such as Cy- Kick 17.5 oz. can, Invader HPX 14 oz. can, and D-Force HPX 14 oz. can. Contact products include items such as PI 18 oz. can, PT 565 Plus 20 oz. can, CB 80 Extra 17 oz. can.

Most all ants forage around the foundation grass line area in search of food or better harborage areas and travel back and forth to the inside. Foundation perimeter treatment is a part of the overall treatment also. Use these Niban products for the foundation grass line, landscape areas, and/or yard areas. These sizes more suited to outside applications they include Niban Insect Bait 5 lb. Shaker Bag, or Niban Insect Bait 40 lb. Bag. The particles are water resistant through up to 4 inches of water. This bait works well through sprinkler cycles, rain, or heavy dew. The particle size is about the same size as a lot of the organic matter they can feed on. It also controls other pests such as roaches, crickets, and earwigs, which are found in the same general area as ants.

Liquid residual concentrates are mixed with water at label rates as needed. This method gets the treated area to a “neutral” condition where no insects are present. The drawback is that after 2 or 3 sprinkler cycles, a rain, or heavy dew the material is diluted to the point of ineffectiveness and nothing is there to provide continued control. If you use this method to control ants and spiders at the same time. Afterwards you may want to treat with the Niban to provide that continued control for non-spider pests. These residual concentrate products include Demand CS 8 oz. or Demand CS 1 qt., Suspend SC 1 pt., Tempo SC 240 ml, Tempo Ultra WP 420 gram btl, Talstar Pro 1 pt. or Talstar Pro ľ gal, Viper 4 oz., Demon WP 4-9.5 gram bags per pk, Demon WP 1 lb. jar, Demon EC 1 pt., Cy-Kick CS 1 pt. or Cy-Kick CS 120 oz.. Viper RTU is a ready to use pre mixed product in a 1 gal. container with a handy sprayer attached to a 1-foot hose. These materials can be applied with a 1 gal. Poly Sprayer or a 2 gal. Poly Sprayer. For foundation perimeter application or yard application use a Gilmour Hose End Sprayer Model 486 or a Gilmour Hose End Sprayer Model 362.

After the immediate problem is controlled applying insecticide dust in the weep holes and other void areas such as gaps, cracks, holes or other areas along the outside is a good way to control pests entering through this area. These products include Delta Dust 1 lb. btl, Delta Dust 5 lb. btl, Borid 1 lb. btl, or Borid 5lb. btl. The insecticide dust is best applied with a Crusader Hand Duster. The dust works by applying a light amount in the target area. The pest then walks across it, picks it up on their body and ingests the dust as they and other nest mates groom themselves. The dust is a stomach poison and control is completed in this manner. If you use too much, they will avoid the area.

Copper mesh is a good product to fill the weep holes with after the insecticide dust treatment. Since it is made of copper it won’t leave streaks down the foundation and the mesh is wide enough to allow adequate ventilation behind the bricks. This includes products such as Stuff-fit Copper Mesh 20 ft. roll, Stuf-fit Copper Mesh 20 ft. Precut, and Stuf-fit Copper Mesh 100 ft. Roll.

Glue boards are a good tool to use because they serve to control the insect, monitor for activity and if any is found observe the direction of the ant's travel. This will allow you to backtrack to find possible harborage areas or entryways. We carry Catchmaster CM MB 72 72 ct box, Catchmaster CM MB 72 8 ct pk, or Trapper LTD 72 ct box.

Always read and follow label directions. For additional information call Do It Yourself Pest Control Supply at 972-562-9999, 903-891-8818, or 866-562-8999 for all your do it yourself pest control supplies.